The Role of Botany in Burned Area Emergency Response

A Sourdough Fire Burned Area Emergency Response team member surveys an area on September 9, 2023.

NPS

One of the scientists on the Burned Area Emergency Response (BAER) team for the 2023 Sourdough Fire was Janet Coles, who was a supervisory biologist at Olympic National Park. During her first permanent job in the National Park Service (NPS), she worked at a park that had experience major fire events. She observed both benefits to the ecosystem, like clearing out thickets of young white fir, and harms, like non-native plant invasions. Unlike most botanists that study individual plant species, Janet identifies as a vegetation ecologist. Her interest lies in how plant species interact with the landscape, and how communities of plants respond to environmental stressors.

As part of the Sourdough Fire BAER team, Janet surveyed invasive plant populations in the field in unburned areas that were next to burned areas. Invasive weeds like scotch broom and bull thistle are the potential seed sources for future invaders of burned ground. Back in the office, she researched park policies for invasive plant management, spoke with local experts, and analyzed existing data of invasive plants to learn what non-native species are most likely to show up in the Sourdough Fire footprint.

Non-native invasive plants are a major concern after a fire. They establish themselves in recently disturbed, open spaces which can impede the recovery of native species and forest canopy. The first year after a fire is critical to ensure the desired recovery occurs over the 3-4 years a BAER project is funded.

Wildfire has a big impact on vegetation since plants compose most of the fuel for fires. The issues Janet focused on are those in which fire suppression activities impact rare plants, intersect with invasive plants, or when trees damaged by fire create hazards for humans or infrastructure. BAER, and its extension Burned Area Rehabilitation (BAR), provide an opportunity to ensure that native plants have a strong start and successfully revegetate burned areas, without letting invasive non-native plants take over.

In the spring of 2024 when plants started to emerge in the burn scar, restoration crews funded through BAER and BAR surveyed the area. They implemented recommended treatments for mitigating invasive non-native plant populations.

Janet compares visiting a recently burned area to visiting a loved one who is in the hospital with a severe illness. The burned area is in a very delicate state and its recovery can be set back by an unknowing visitor.

You can do your part to help the ecosystem with this rehabilitation. When visiting burned areas after they are reopened and considered safe, check your gear to make sure it’s clean, especially if recreating in different areas and ecosystems. Be careful not to carry seeds of invasive weeds on your boots, clothes, or packs.